Chapter 250: Rebirth-5
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 250: Rebirth-5
Kang In-ho couldn't remember how he spent the rest of the afternoon classes.
He felt as though he had been diligently taking notes and solving problems, but when he tried to recall the details, he felt like a traveler wandering aimlessly through a thick, white fog.
By the time he snapped out of it, it was time for the final homeroom.
The homeroom teacher, making no effort to hide his utter boredom, dismissed the class, and everyone poured out of the school in a frantic rush.
"See you tomorrow."
Even as his neighbor, Jung Sang-hoon, said goodbye and left, In-ho only nodded mechanically, his gaze still fixed on empty space.
Before long, only two students remained in the empty classroom.
Kang In-ho and Shin Jeong-ah. Shin Jeong-ah and Kang In-ho.
Though the two had spent the last few days pretending the other didn't exist, today was different.
Shin Jeong-ah stood up, her chair screeching against the floor as it moved.
Having already packed her bag, she walked over and stood beside Kang In-ho’s desk.
"Let’s go."
She spoke to him cautiously.
"...Yeah."
Kang In-ho didn't bother hiding his troubled expression as he stood up.
After leaving the school, the place Jeong-ah led him to was a cafe. It was an ordinary franchise cafe with a spacious second floor. They took a seat in a secluded corner of the quiet upper level.
"To be honest, I thought you’d ignore me..."
Jeong-ah gave an awkward smile. It seemed she truly hadn't expected him to agree to talk so easily.
"Ah... well..."
He couldn't bring himself to say it was because of what Kim Jin-tae had told him, so he let his voice trail off.
"No, it’s fine. The reason doesn't matter."
Forcing a bright smile, Jeong-ah placed her hand over In-ho’s, which was resting on the table.
"I’m just grateful you even came this far."
Seeing her smile so mournfully made In-ho’s stomach churn.
"So... what did you want to talk about?"
In-ho asked tentatively, unsettled by her uncharacteristically demure behavior.
"Um..."
Jeong-ah seemed to find it difficult to start; she traced the rim of her coffee cup with her index finger.
And the longer she hesitated, the more In-ho’s mouth went bone-dry.
He still didn't know exactly what she was going to say, but his human intuition was ringing an alarm bell in his head.
You’re fucked.
That’s what it was saying.
He hastily picked up his cup and swallowed some coffee. He didn't drink it; he swallowed it. Filling his mouth with that bitter black liquid seemed to sharpen his dazed mind just a little.
Jeong-ah continued to trace the rim of the cup.
"In-ho."
Clink. The ice in the cup melted and shifted downward.
Kang In-ho looked into Jeong-ah’s eyes.
She kept her gaze fixed on her drink, her lips moving slightly as if she were whispering a private lament.
"I'm..."
It was a small sound, but the meaning of those words reached In-ho’s ears with absolute clarity.
Kang In-ho froze in the exact position he was in while looking at her.
His lips twitched repeatedly. He looked like a man with a thousand things to say.
However, he couldn't bring himself to utter anything cold or indifferent. The words Kim Jin-tae had said to him kept flashing through his mind.
"Ah..."
A hollow, lingering sigh fell onto the table.
Silence followed. A heavy atmosphere persisted, making it difficult for either of them to speak. Kang In-ho chose his words carefully, while Jeong-ah searched his face for a reaction.
"I know it’s hard to believe..."
Jeong-ah spoke in a crawling voice. Her hands trembled like those of a criminal.
"But it’s true... I’ve only ever been with you."
Like a defendant pleading her innocence, she sought his validation.
"......."
Knowing that no words would be enough, Kang In-ho maintained his silence.
Perhaps taking his silence as a rejection, Jeong-ah bit her lower lip slightly and pulled something out of her bag.
It was a piece of plastic, pink and white.
Jeong-ah slowly slid the object—which, at a glance, looked like a thermometer—toward him.
"...Ah."
A short gasp escaped his lips.
Staring at the two distinct red lines that had appeared on the device, Kang In-ho heard an auditory hallucination whispering in his ear.
You’re fucked.
*
As it turned out, Jeong-ah hadn't sought In-ho out expecting an immediate solution.
"For now, I just thought you should know... so..."
"Yeah. Right."
The thought that she might be lying hadn't completely bypassed his mind. However, Jeong-ah’s face, her attitude, and the evidence she had brought—everything screamed that this was the truth.
What’s the point of crossing countless dimensions if I’ve never dealt with something like this? In-ho thought.
"Since it’s still early... let’s take some time to think."
"What about your parents..."
He started to speak but cut himself off, realizing it was a stupid question.
"Haha, obviously..."
Jeong-ah gave a bitter laugh.
"...I'm sorry."
After cycling through a thousand thoughts, the only thing he could manage was a cliché apology.
"No. I’m responsible for this too."
Jeong-ah responded, her expression looking a bit brighter than before.
Clink. The ice in the cup melted and shifted again.
"In-ho, you won't pretend you don't know me, right?"
As if seeking confirmation, Jeong-ah leaned forward, bringing her face closer to his.
"...How could I pretend not to know?"
In-ho leaned back slightly, trying to reassure her.
At his words, Jeong-ah beamed.
"Thank you. Hearing you say that gives me a bit of strength."
She spoke like someone who had just been pulled out of a deep quagmire.
Not much conversation followed after that. They simply sat there, drinking the coffee on the table.
The only thing that changed was the distance between them as they walked down the street; it had narrowed. Jeong-ah walked about two steps closer to his side.
Clink. In-ho’s heart crumbled.
Whether she noticed his state of mind or not, Jeong-ah looked happy.